fluxscape | Closed

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What: Jessica and Bruce - two 'heroes' hanging at a bar
Where: Pour Judgement
When: 5/30 - evening
Warnings: Will update as needed.

Hey, I know we don't talk a lot but I have this new business. You should check it out and check in. Jessica Jones

Jessica studied the message once again before finally pressing send and tossing the device on top of the bar where she was sitting. For now, the place was quiet but she wondered what it would be like once she opened it to the public. Just the idea caused a small pang as she couldn't help thinking of Luke briefly, wondering once again what he might have thought about her having and running a bar. Would he find some kind of amusement in it?

She chuckled briefly while sliding off of the stool and moving around to stand behind the bar where the alcohol was. Picking up a bottle of whiskey, she took the top off and gave the fumes a small sniff before pouring a bit into a glass that she placed on the counter in front of her.

By the time Bruce made his way down if he decided to come to the location she had pinned for him, he would find her sitting on one of the stools nursing a drink until she caught sight of him. Sitting a bit straighter, she lifted her chin in greeting while lifting her glass so he could see it. "Want something?"

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"I've told the few that came in that I won't be open for a couple of days," Jessica answered easily enough before smirking faintly. "And I can handle anyone that has a problem with it."

He had seen firsthand how she might 'handle' people but she wasn't aware of that as she found herself briefly amused at her own joke while taking another sip of her drink. Then she set her glass down again as she got to her feet, moving around behind the bar once more while he made his way over.

"Do you like whiskey or are you more of a wine man?"

"Trained in the art of self-protection? Good. We need more people like that here." He glanced around again before taking a seat at the bar.

It was a quaint bar. Not that it was a bad thing at all. It felt familiar and comfortable, which was all it really needed to be. Somewhere that the fluxing people could go to feel centered and everyone else in Haven could get a piece of a quieter atmosphere -- maybe even friendly.

"Whiskey is fine. Wine is only for special dinners."

"Are you saying that you don't think a lot of people here know how to look after themselves?" She wasn't judging the statement, she was more just curious about his assessment of the people in Haven.

It was definitely a nicer bar than she would have originally picked if she had to imagine herself having one but that was probably a good thing. She had never been picky about where she was drinking before but this place was definitely cozy and comfortable. Plus she figured the dance floor was a nice touch.

"So what have you been doing with yourself?" She asked when she slid a drink in front of him a moment later.

"I think a lot of people here are used to having others do thee saving. Which, not everyone can make it as a power house or even a hero. Just an observation. The natives here? I think they're used to having to fight for what they want or need. Even if it means fighting each other. We all need to be on our toes."

It was something of a bar and something of a dance club. A place to hang out and forget the insanity of the world around them. How much the locals would take to the idea remained to be seen.

"Working on some home projects." Bruce answered truthfully. He nodded in thanks to the drink. "There's some things I have from home that I figured I'd put to use if we're going to really track all this information."

There was a quiet look on her face at his assessment which she couldn't really argue with. She knew what people were like, how often they looked to other people to do their dirty work for them, and how they would often turn around to shit on the very people they called heroes.

"Well, luckily, I'm used to being on my toes." And maybe it was cruel to say but she wasn't at all concerned with the locals or how they might take to her bar. She was thinking more about the people that were like them though she was going to keep an eye on everyone.

"Yeah?" She moved to sit down, picking up her own drink again. "Anything interesting?"

In other words, anything he could actually tell her about?

"I think more of us are than we admit to one another. Too many of us are used to working solo. Myself included."

He glanced at her as she took her seat beside him. Then, a small shrug. "Nothing that I've been able to keep track of yet. I'm sure the smaller groups within our numbers have managed to find something by now. Our problem is that we don't have a secure place to keep what we find. Everything is based on a network that we have access to the moment we arrive. I've never trusted it."

She couldn't help but nod at the assessment that there was a lot of them that were used to being on their toes or being more of a solo act. She had definitely been in the past and even during the times when she had worked with someone else or a group? She had been resistant until the very end and then she had shifted back to working alone.

"Do you think we can find or create a secure place? Or secure channels that we can use?" She asked, glancing around her bar. She could offer it but even she wasn't sure where they could hide anything they might want to. Still, "We could probably use this as a meeting place during certain hours to trade information or whatever but that probably isn't what you had in mind."

"It'll take time, effort, and the resources available. Resources aren't something that we have an abundance of here in Haven. We can focus on the rest in the mean time. I'm working on that database, meanwhile, we need to think of ways to make our ... community self sufficient." Bruce paused to take a drink. He was sure this wasn't what Jessica had in mind when Bruce Wayne stepped into the building. "We need to be able to blend into whatever surrounding we show up in, but, we also need to be able to support ourselves. We've got kids here, and people in every level of the local government. For whatever government that Haven has."

He looked over at her. "Any ideas? And, it would be best if your bar had a basement we could meet in for the meantime."

No, it really wasn't what she'd had in mind when she had invited him over just to check on him but it was fine. At least she knew he was okay, even if he was thinking pretty hard about this thing he was trying to put together.

"Well, I don't know much about how to make our community self-sufficient but I think I can help with something else," She motioned for him to grab his drink and follow as she slid off her stool to walk to the kitchen area. It was a short walk to go through but he would see another door that revealed a set of stairs leading down into a basement.

"It's nothing impressive but it's a good size," She told him when they got to the bottom of the stairs and she could flip the switch to turn the lights on. The first room was clearly for storage but then she led him across to another door where there was another decent-sized room sitting empty at the moment. Stepping aside, she let him wander in while she took a sip of her drink.

As fine as Bruce Wayne ever really was anyways. The knowledge of what Clark was talking into when he went home was something that weighed heavily on his mind. But, he spent enough time mourning his own screw ups. Now it was time to do something or he'd go mad with his self-loathing.

He was already a little insane as it was.

Bruce picked up his glass and followed after her. His eyebrows raised at the sight of the stairs, but nodded. It was fairly easy to tell where she was going with it all. Still, she might have had a few more surprises up her sleeve.

"Have you found any other entrances?"

Jess never really spent time mourning her own screw ups. She preferred to push them down and out of her mind as best she could so she could live day to day without things weighing too heavily on her. Of course, that shit didn't always work and she sometimes defaulted to questionable methods of dealing with her issues but it was all a work in progress. Right?

"Not that I've found so far," Jess answered with a little shrug, glancing around the room before moving further inwards. "Why? Are you thinking of something a little more secretive?"

Well, at least one of the two could move forward without their mistakes hovering over their heads. Bruce could learn a thing or two from that example.

"More wondering about security more than anything." He commented gently. "I found a cave under the house I've called home since Driftcrest. I just wondered if there was an underground tunnel here too."

Maybe he shouldn't be following her example in any way but she was doing her best, most of the time. Sometimes she wasn't trying very hard at all but everyone had their off days. Or weeks or months.

"You don't have to worry about security here," She smirked briefly before sobering and looking around. "But I haven't found anything like that. I'll keep looking but what about using the cave under the house? Or is that too close to home for you?"

Bruce wouldn't suggest anyone follow his example either. He spiraled out of control until he hit rock bottom. His principles had been lost in the whirlwind of grief and paranoia. He had made progress, especially since coming to the various degrees of realities in this joined multiverse space.

"The cave system seems to go up to different places that collapsed a long time ago. So, nothing but to the surface." He continued to take a look around the area. He wouldn't be sharing how he could get to the cave from the house. "Which makes me wonder if they've ever bothered to dig deep. There could be an underwater reserve somewhere."

Jess has hit rock bottom a couple of times and then always found a way to drag herself out. She was a survivor, she was good at that. She had a feeling that Bruce was too even if it was a struggle.

"Are you thinking we should find out? Try to find some way to dig deep and see what there is?" She asked curiously, tilting her head to the side. "Or maybe another way down?"

Surviving was a skill he had learned at a young age. The way he survived may not have been the healthiest or the best. It worked for him and it saved others. That is all that really mattered to him. Improving things so that the next generations could inherit something better.

"It couldn't hurt, but, it's not necessary." Bruce turned back to her. "I'm wondering how we'd gather here without raising too much suspicion."

Jess wasn't the type to knock someone's ability to survive since she knew sometimes people had to do desperate things to do so. There were people who most certainly wouldn't agree with the things she had done but she hadn't hurt anyone innocent. Mostly just herself and she was the one who had to live with that, not them. No matter what her friends said.

"It's a bar, Bruce," She remarked somewhat dryly, tilting her head as she arched a brow at him. "People gathering here is kind of the idea of the place."

He chuckled at her point. "Still, people can notice when more people than normal are arriving. Unless you want to cover it with some sort of event."

Bruce, honestly, simply remained that paranoiid.

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